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Framework for Environmental Assessment of Alternative Flood Framework for Environmental Assessment of Alternative Flood Control Structures on Chef Menteur and Rigolets Passes within the Lake Pontchartrain Estuary, Southeast Louisiana Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation saveourlake.org Authors: John A. Lopez Ph.D., Mallory Davis, MSCE, EI, Rebecca Cope, BS Final Report June 2011 1 Table of Contents Executive Summary .........................................................................................................................5 Chapter 1: Introduction ..................................................................................................................10 Chapter 2: Lake Pontchartrain & Vicinity Authority ....................................................................13 2.1: Hurricane Katrina ..........................................................................................................15 Chapter 3: Lake Pontchartrain Estuary…………………..………………………………………20 Chapter 4: Hurricane Surge Dynamics of Lake Pontchartrain…………………………………..23 Chapter 5: Physical Description of Pass Rigolets & Chef Menteur Pass………………………..25 Chapter 6: Description of Alternative Flood Control Structures ……………………………….29 Chapter 7: Potential Effects of Alternative Flood Control Structures – Closed Position….……32 Chapter 8: Potential Effects of Alternative Flood Control Structures – Open Position…….…..37 Chapter 9: Description of Individual, Representative Aquatic Species Potentially Affected by Flood Control Structures………………………………………………….…………….51 Chapter 10: Conclusions …………………………………………………………………….…66 Acronym List……………………………………………………………………………………68 References………………………………………………………………………………………69 Appendix………………………………………………………………………………….…….73 2 List of Figures Figure 1: Map of Louisiana, including the hurricane tracks of some of the major hurricane … 11 Figure 2: Southeastern Coast of Louisiana, including annotations for the water bodies and waterway …………………… ………………………………………………………… 12 Figure 3: Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity 1962 Plans for Hurricane Protection. Both the “Barrier Plan” and the “High Level Plan” …………………………………...………… 14 Figure 4: Task Force Guardian Hurricane Protection System Restoration Program Map …..... 15 Figure 5: 50-yr Timeline of Significant Congressional, Judicial, and Headquarters Decisions . 17 Figure 6: 50-yr Timeline of Significant Hurricane Performance Decisions Figure 7: Lake Pontchartrain Basin Estuar ……………………………………………….…… 20 Figure 8: Close-up view of Lakes Pontchartrain, Maurepas, and Borgne and the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes………………………………………………………….………….21 Figure 9: Mississippi River Gulf Outlet Channel…………………………………….…………23 Figure 10: Surge model for Hurricane Katrina in one hour increments ……………….………24 Figure 11: Google Earth Image of the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes……...…….………..26 Figure 12: Scour Patterns in Chef Menteur Pass Following Hurricane Katrina…….………….27 Figure 13: Cross-sectional area histogram for Pass Rigolets………………………….………..28 Figure 14: Cross-sectional area histogram for Chef Menteur Pass…………….…….…………28 Figure 15: Thalweg profiles for Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes……..………….………… 29 Figure 16: Image map of the 1969 & 2007 proposed flood control structures- Rigolets Pass… 30 Figure 17: Image map of the 1970 & 2007 proposed flood control structures- Chef Menteur Pass……………………..……………………………………………………….……… 30 Figure 18: Two graphical depictions of a generalized food web for Lake Pontchartrain…...… 34 Figure 19: Relationship between change to tidal prism and constriction of passes …….…..… 38 Figure 20: The old 1970 USACE Rigolets flood control structure diagram ………………….. 39 Figure 21: The new 2007 UNO Rigolets flood control structure diagram ……………….….... 40 Figure 22: Graphical representation of falling tide with flood control structure in an open position ………………………………………………………………….………..……. 41 Figure 23: Cross-sectional area histogram for Pass Rigolets with several of the proposed flood control structure designs ………………………………………………….…...……….. 42 Figure 24: Cross-sectional areas for Pass Rigolets every 1,000 ft. ………………….………… 43 Figure 25: The 1969 USACE Chef Menteur Pass flood control structure diagram .…......…… 44 Figure 26: The new 2007 UNO Chef Menteur Pass flood control structure diagram ..…...…... 45 Figure 27: Cross-sectional area histogram for Chef Menteur Pass with several of the proposed structure design ………………………………………………………...………..…….. 46 Figure 28: Cross-sectional areas for Chef Menteur Pass every 1,000 ft…………….….…….... 47 Figure 29: Representative Flood Control Structure hydraulics……………………….……..… 50 Figure 30: Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus) ...……………………………………...………….. 51 Figure 31: Larval Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus) ……...……………………………………. 51 Figure 32: Larval Blue Crab in Water (Callinectes sapidus) ………...…………...………..…. 51 Figure 33: Brown Shrimp (Farfantepenaeus aztecus) ………..…………………….……...…. 52 Figure 34: Gulf Menhaden (Brevoortia patronus) …………………...……...………….…….. 53 Figure 35: Red Drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) ………………………………...…………...……. 54 Figure 36: Spot (Leiostomus xanthurus) ………………………………..…...………….…..…. 55 3 Figure 37: Sand seatrout (Cynoscion arenarius)…………………………….……..…..…….... 55 Figure 38: Striped Mullet (Mugil cephalus)…………………………………………………… 56 Figure 39: Atlantic Croaker (Micropogonias undulatus)……………………………………… 57 Figure 40: Crevalle Jack (Caranx hippos)……………………………………………………... 58 Figure 41: Gulf Sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi)…………………………………...... 59 Figure 42: Gulf Sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi) with an illustrated barrier sill…....... 59 Figure 43: Bull Shark (Carcharhinus leucas)……………………………………….………..... 60 Figure 44: West Indian Manatee ( Trichechus manatus)…………………………….………… 61 Figure 45: West Indian Manatee Range in Louisina based on historical sightings….………… 62 Figure 46: West Indian Manatee Frequency in the Pontchartrain Basin………….…………… 63 Figure 47: Loggerhead Sea Turtle (Caretta caretta)…………………………….…………..… 63 Figure 48: Phytoplankton List of Tables Table 1: Dimensions of Relevant water bodies ………………………………………………..22 Table 2: Dimensions of UNO modeled flood control Structures ………………………………31 Table 3: Discharge from rivers and tributaries into the Lake Pontchartrain region………….…33 Table 4: Significant Species that Utilize Rigolets & Chef Menteur Passes……………………35 Table 5: Summary of Potential Impacts to Fishes and Invertebrates due to the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes Flood Control Structures – Closed Position…………………………………....37 Table 6: Comparison of the cross-sectional areas of the 1970 USACE, 2007 UNO, and 2007 LA State Master Plan flood control structure designs for Pass Rigolets………………………….…42 Table 7: Comparison of the cross-sectional areas of the 1969 USACE, 2007 UNO, and 2007 LA State Master Plan flood control structure designs for Chef Menteur Pass. ………………….….46 Table 8: Summary of Potential Impacts to Fishes and Invertebrates due to the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes Flood Control Structures – Open Position……………………………………..49 4 Executive Summary This report examines the potential environmental effects of various alternative flood control structures on the tidal passes into Lake Pontchartrain, originally conceived as a ”Barrier Plan” by the Corps of Engineers to protect the Greater New Orleans region. Specifically under investigation is the effect proposed flood control structures in the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes would have on the hydrodynamics, water quality, and ecology of the passes and the Lake Pontchartrain Basin estuary. Several flood control structure designs for the Orleans Land Bridge, which separates Lake Pontchartrain from the Gulf of Mexico, have been drafted since the early 1960’s, but were never constructed. In lieu of a “Barrier Plan”, a “High Level Plan” composed of levees and floodwalls was being constructed, but was incomplete when Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. After severe storm surge flooding in the New Orleans, St. Bernard and St. Tammany Parishes from Hurricane Katrina, the flood control structures in the tidal passes have been reconsidered. The purpose of this report is to generally indicate possible harmful effects of implementing these structures as they are currently conceived, as well as to create a framework for future ecological and hydrological assessments. Three different structure design dimensions are described for each of the Rigolets and Chef Menteur Passes, including the original “Barrier Plan” designs, the Louisiana State Master Plan proposals, and the hydrologically determined designs based on University of New Orleans modeling. These designs must suffice for this framework assessment; until a more detailed design is conceived at which time these issues would be more thoroughly evaluated. After several brutal hurricanes in 1955, Congress sanctioned the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to perform a series of studies to investigate hurricane protection options for areas along the eastern and southern U.S. coasts. One of these commissioned studies (authorized 1965) was the Lake Pontchartrain & Vicinity Hurricane Protection Project (LP&VHPP). As part of this project, a “Barrier Plan” was developed that would protect the Greater New Orleans area (St. Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson, and St. Charles Parishes). This plan consisted of levees along Lake Pontchartrain and flood control structures in the two natural tidal passes. Over the next 50 years, the designs and locations of the two proposed structures changed, including a switch over to a “High Level Plan” after an injunction in 1975. The “High Level Plan” consisted of higher levee heights along
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